Where has all the luster gone?

For the third year in a row, the demand for a "coveted" H-1B visa number has dwindled. Coincidently, the Wall Street Journal reported this lack of demand at the same time it highlighted U.S. investors' recent about-face for silver's luster. While a tangible connection between the two is tenuous at best, the H-1B program, much like the commodities markets, appears to have lost its cachet.

Whereas, in both April 2007 and April 2008, demand far outweighed supply and the available H-1B visa numbers were used up in a matter of 24 to 48 hours, this April only 8,000 of the available 65,000 numbers were scooped up in the first five days of opening the cap to qualified candidates. The Wall Street Journal article linked above only serves to reinforce what has become a disturbing trend largely caused by the isolationist immigration policy in the United States. While the slow pace of the U.S. recovery is certainly another factor in the declining luster of the H-1B visa, the article describes several other key factors are in play, including increased opportunities for skilled workers in their respective home countries, increased fees for high users of the "specialty worker" visas, attacks on the H-1B program by congressional foes of the program and the recognition by U.S. employers that it has become somewhat of a liability to hire H-1B workers.

It is indeed alarming that, despite a well-documented shortage of homegrown engineering and scientific talent in the United States, our country's anti-immigrant climate is still alive and well and clearly serving to drive some of the best and brightest from around the world back to their home countries after they have been educated by our universities. Is it no wonder that New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has referred to the current immigration policy in the United States as a form of "national suicide?"

In addition to the largely isolationist immigration policies in this country, perhaps one of the ways in which the United States is committing the so-called "national suicide" is through its opaque system of security checks. Through a euphemism known as "administrative processing," countless H-1B visa applicants (who have already received approval of the classification from DHS and some of whom have spent several years in the U.S. as students or on previous work visas) are delayed abroad for several months - and in some cases for more than a year - awaiting clearance by the State Department from one or more of the "animal farm" reviews (Condor, Donkey and Mantis). These interminable bureaucratic delays in making a decision exist even though government officials acknowledge that less than 1 percent of those screened raise any legitimate security concerns.

The foregoing offers this troubling conclusion: the United States, a country built by generations of ambitious, hardworking newcomers, seems no longer interested in attracting and keeping skilled immigrants. Our nation is experiencing a "brain drain" for the first time in its history. The silver - let alone the gold - luster of our shores is diminishing, yet our leaders do not appear to connect the dots to our broken immigration system.

Comments

Dolores Cruz
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05-16-2011 09:31 AM

We can get back to worrying about immigrants after we get our own brains and skilled workers back to work. We have especially wasted a decade of American IT talent by flushing them down the john to make room for over a million (mostly mediocre) H-1Bs.

ctrl alt del
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05-16-2011 10:53 AM

Isolationist goes both ways: it's an open secret that American workers are discriminated against by Indian bodyshops and hiring managers. Unemployment is the highest it's been since the depression. These fees are in place to discourage the flood of foreign labor that is displacing Americans. One has to question why the majority of the 'highly skilled' H1B'ers come from the world's poorest countries? There is no 'IT industry' where these workers come from, they are provided by temp worker agencies (bodyshops). As well, there is no Indian OS, no major application suites, database framework apps, etc. to speak of from the country that files for the greatest number of these guestwoker visas. America is not the world's job fair - not while we have the unemployment levels everyone is suffering from today.

Wakjob
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05-16-2011 11:49 AM

The idea that immigrants built America is ludicrous. 84% of the current American population was born here. Every immigration wave since 1900 has led to recession:

1906-1921 Led to the Great Depression and WW2.

1965 Immigration Act led to the economic disaster of th 1970s.

1990 H-1B via program was started and it led to the 1991-1993 recession.

1998-2000 H-1B visa caps were raised into the millions led to the 2001 and 2008 economic disasters and the biggest recession in 70 years.

From 1978-1998 the IT sector was 98% white American males. Large numbers of invading foreigners didn't start arriving until early 1999 and the US economy collapsed a mere 2 years later. Compare that to a boom from 1994-1998 which was run by Americans who WERE BORN HERE.

Further, we're TRAINING most of these "brillaint immigrants" that we're brining in. Americans who were born here and BUILT the IT industry are TRAINING them. Many of them have fake degrees from non-existent schools in the 3rd world (Also Google "Duke Asian cheating scandal).

America's new industries and booming economy are always created by Americans. Then the rest of the world wants to take. Once they've siphoned off all our wealth and Americans lose their houses because their jobs have been stolen, THEN all of a sudden our gov't finally wakes up and closes the doors.

It is absurd to think that America needs people from a country which hasn't mastered indoor plumbing yet and can't pick up its own garbage.

Stop the invasion of America before there is nothing left at all.

Wakjob
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05-16-2011 11:50 AM

Companies ruined or almost ruined by Indian labor

Adaptec - Indian CEO Subramanian Sundaresh fired.
AIG (signed outsourcing deal in 2007 in Europe with Accenture Indian frauds, collapsed in 2009)
AirBus (Qantas plane plunged 650 feet injuring passengers when its computer system written by India disengaged the auto-pilot).
Apple - R&D CLOSED in India in 2006.
Australia's National Australia Bank (Outsourced jobs to India in 2007, nationwide ATM and account failure in late 2010).
Bell Labs (Arun Netravalli took over, closed, turned into a shopping mall)
Boeing Dreamliner ES software (written by HCL, banned by FAA)
Bristol-Myers-Squibb (Trade Secrets and documents stolen in U.S. by Indian national guest worker)
Caymas - Startup run by Indian CEO, French director of dev, Chinese tech lead. Closed after 5 years of ******* VC out of America.
Circuit City - Outsourced all IT to Indian-run IBM and went bankrupt shortly thereafter.
ComAir crew system run by 100% Indian IT workers caused the 12/25/05 U.S. airport shutdown when they used a short int instead of a long int
Deloitte - 2010 - this Indian-packed consulting company is being sued under RICO fraud charges by Marin Country, California for a failed solution.
Dell - call center (closed in India)
Delta call centers (closed in India)
Fannie Mae - Hired large numbers of Indians, had to be bailed out. Indian logic bomb creator found guilty.
GM - Was booming in 2006, signed $300 million outsourcing deal with Wipro that same year, went bankrupt 3 years later
HSBC ATMs (software taken over by Indians, failed in 2006)
Intel Whitefield processor project (cancelled, Indian staff canned)
Lehman (Spectramind software bought by Wipro, ruined, trashed by Indian programmers)
Medicare - Defrauded by Indian national doctor Arun Sharma & wife in the U.S.
Microsoft - Employs over 35,000 H-1Bs. Stock used to be $100. Today it's lucky to be over $25. Not to mention that Vista thing.
MIT Media Lab Asia (canceled)
PeopleSoft (Taken over by Indians in 2000, collapsed).
Polycom - Former senior executive Sunil Bhalla charged with insider trading.
Qantas - See AirBus above
Quark (Alukah Kamar CEO, fired, lost 60% of its customers to Adobe because Indian-written QuarkExpress 6 was a failure)
Rolls Royce (Sent aircraft engine work to India in 2006, engines delayed for Boeing 787, and failed on at least 2 Quantas planes in 2010, cost Rolls $500m).
SAP - Same as Deloitte above in 2010.
Skype (Madhu Yarlagadda fired)
State of Indiana $867 million FAILED IBM project, IBM being sued
State of Texas failed IBM project.
Sun Micro (Taken over by Indian and Chinese workers in 2001, collapsed, had to be sold off to Oracle).
UK's NHS outsourced numerous jobs including health records to India in mid-2000 resulting in $26 billion over budget.
United - call center (closed in India)
Virgin Atlantic (software written in India caused cloud IT failure)
World Bank (Indian fraudsters BANNED for 3 years because they stole data).

I could post the whole list here but I don't want to crash any servers.

Wakjob
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05-16-2011 11:54 AM

Since you guys are a bunch of lawyers, I am sure you will agree that everyone must obey they law. The fact is, Title 8, Section 1182 says ALL foreign workers are INADMISSIBLE if even one American's wages or working conditions are adversely affected:

(a) Classes of aliens ineligible for visas or admission
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, aliens who are inadmissible under the following paragraphs are ineligible to receive visas and ineligible to be admitted to the United States:

...

(D) Immigrant membership in totalitarian party
(i) In general Any immigrant who is or has been a member of or affiliated with the Communist or any other totalitarian party (or subdivision or affiliate thereof), domestic or foreign, is inadmissible.

...

(5) Labor certification and qualifications for certain immigrants
(A) Labor certification
(i) In general Any alien who seeks to enter the United States for the purpose of performing skilled or unskilled labor is inadmissible, unless the Secretary of Labor has determined and certified to the Secretary of State and the Attorney General that--
(I) there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, qualified (or equally qualified in the case of an alien described in clause (ii)) and available at the time of application for a visa and admission to the United States and at the place where the alien is to perform such skilled or unskilled labor, and
(II) * * * the employment of such alien will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed * * *."

Dolores Cruz
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05-16-2011 12:02 PM

Don't forget Tri Valley University (and many others like it) where the kids come in on student visas, but instead of attending class and doing homework, they head straight to work - in jobs all over the country. We've got at least 1 million of these various visa folks here, having arrived over the last decade. When were we better off, then or now?

Immigration attorneys will be next. The symbolism of using an attorney from these countries (Well one country! you know who!!!) to show how successful they've been here means guess what?? You guys will be gone!!! Slowly but surely!!!!!

THERE IS NO SHORTAGE!!!!!

Ok ,let me say this again for all you attorneys who need smallprint and legal filler material to comprehend a a very simple message!

The USA has an over-abundance of very talented STEM workers who are systematically being displaced by mostly inferior quality workers on "guest worker visas" by a collusion of vested interest parties (Bean Counters, attorneys, bodyshops) who constanly propaganize the "shortage" myth to perpetuate their own self interest.

(a) Classes of aliens ineligible for visas or admission
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, aliens who are inadmissible under the following paragraphs are ineligible to receive visas and ineligible to be admitted to the United States:

...

(D) Immigrant membership in totalitarian party
(i) In general Any immigrant who is or has been a member of or affiliated with the Communist or any other totalitarian party (or subdivision or affiliate thereof), domestic or foreign, is inadmissible.

...

(5) Labor certification and qualifications for certain immigrants
(A) Labor certification
(i) In general Any alien who seeks to enter the United States for the purpose of performing skilled or unskilled labor is inadmissible, unless the Secretary of Labor has determined and certified to the Secretary of State and the Attorney General that--
(I) there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, qualified (or equally qualified in the case of an alien described in clause (ii)) and available at the time of application for a visa and admission to the United States and at the place where the alien is to perform such skilled or unskilled labor, and
(II) * * * the employment of such alien will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed * * *."

Got it????

Now do something more constructive and chase an ambulance like all other self respecting attorneys!!!!!

Immigration attorneys will be next. The symbolism of using an attorney from these countries (Well one country! You know who!!!) to show how successful they've been here means guess what?? You guys will be gone!!! Slowly but surely!!!!!

THERE IS NO SHORTAGE!!!!!

Ok ,let me say this again for all you attorneys who need smallprint and legal filler material to comprehend a a very simple message!

The USA has an over-abundance of very talented STEM workers who are systematically being displaced by mostly inferior quality workers on "guest worker visas" by a collusion of vested interest parties (Bean Counters, attorneys, bodyshops) who constanly propagandize the "shortage" myth to perpetuate their own self interest.

These action are in contradiction of "TITLE 8 > CHAPTER 12 > SUBCHAPTER II > Part II > ? 1182 and are therefore , in a word, ILLEGAL!

? 1182. Inadmissible aliens

(a) Classes of aliens ineligible for visas or admission
Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, aliens who are inadmissible under the following paragraphs are ineligible to receive visas and ineligible to be admitted to the United States:

...

(D) Immigrant membership in totalitarian party
(i) In general Any immigrant who is or has been a member of or affiliated with the Communist or any other totalitarian party (or subdivision or affiliate thereof), domestic or foreign, is inadmissible.

...

(5) Labor certification and qualifications for certain immigrants
(A) Labor certification
(i) In general Any alien who seeks to enter the United States for the purpose of performing skilled or unskilled labor is inadmissible, unless the Secretary of Labor has determined and certified to the Secretary of State and the Attorney General that--
(I) there are not sufficient workers who are able, willing, qualified (or equally qualified in the case of an alien described in clause (ii)) and available at the time of application for a visa and admission to the United States and at the place where the alien is to perform such skilled or unskilled labor, and
(II) * * * the employment of such alien will not adversely affect the wages and working conditions of workers in the United States similarly employed * * *."

Got it????

Now do something more constructive and chase an ambulance like all other self respecting attorneys!!!!!

James
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05-16-2011 07:27 PM

There is a silent race war going on in corporate America - the very Asians we have been importing for 13 years have been plundering our economy and technology, sending it all back to Asia to compete against us.

Asians are purposely denying jobs to white Americans. This race war is in full swing.

The whole world is jealous of us and wants what we have created. And we're too scared to stop it.

h1b
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05-16-2011 11:06 PM

Stop hating the H1bs and start learning some stuff. Start being more useful than b***tching about something that is not the fault of an h1b worker..

guest workers are not immigrants
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05-17-2011 04:15 AM

Well well!!! A H-1B!!! there's an unbiased opinion!!!!!

Don't worry. You will become an endangered species! The myth that you are "Best and Brightest" is being well and truly busted. The last 10 years as overwhelmingly proved that and the message is finally getting heard. I am an immigrant US citizen who vested his future here. An H-1B (let me guess where you're from?) as a whole is vastly inferior and is a pariah on this economy and culture in every way.
Attorneys, go back to helping the real immigrants and not these "guest workers" who are destroying the very fabric of this great country that allowed you to become successful as attorneys!!

James
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05-17-2011 02:49 PM

"Stop hating the H1bs and start learning some stuff. Start being more useful than b***tching about something that is not the fault of an h1b worker.."

This coming from someone from somewhere in India - a country that can't even build indoor plumbing or get accredidation for IIT.

Americans built IT long before Indiots ever got here. They come here to learn from us. We don't need to learn anything. We were here for centuries building this country long before know-nothing Indians flooded in and destroyed the place. It is YOU who needs to "learn some stuff" - such as not raping other countries who have produced every industry that now employs your people.

Can anyone name even one major industry or invention to come out of India?

No, you can't - because everything they have they got from Americans.

Wakjob
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05-17-2011 05:33 PM

WASHINGTON - The Justice Department announced today that it has reached a settlement agreement with Iflowsoft LLC, a computer programming services provider in Iselin, N.J ., to settle allegations that Iflowsoft engaged in a pattern or practice of citizenship status discrimination by preferring to hire temporary visa holders over United States citizens.

According to the department's findings, Iflowsoft posted several job advertisements for IT professionals expressing a preference for temporary visa holders (specifically H-1B transfers and/or OPT candidates). The facially discriminatory advertisements deterred the charging party, a United States citizen, from applying to Iflowsoft. In addition, the department found Iflowsoft hired an H1-B visa holder without considering a qualified United States citizen applicant. The Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) generally prohibits employers from discriminating based on citizenship status during the hiring process.

web design jacksonville florida
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06-05-2012 11:41 PM

Lack of employment is the biggest it's been since the depressive disorder. These charges are in place to prevent the overflow of foreign work that is displacing People in america.

Ana
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08-13-2012 03:19 PM

While I've tried to take the time to read everyone's posts I'm geinttg tired of reading the same thing over and over again. I believe this strike is misguided and is not working for the collective whole of full-time support staff. There are items that have been raised to do with part-time workers, flexible hours, probationary periods. Now I ask you, why on earth does the union want to represent part-time workers and student workers, don't you see that is a conflict of interest how can one group represent two working populations seems a bit off to me. Probationary periods have to do with new staff, why should I be concerned about new staff why am I fighting for someone that doesn't even work here? How does that affect my job. Flex work can be a good thing but perhaps should be amended to say that it needs to be discussed and agreed upon by the employee it affects. This may be a good option for some people's lifestyles. I don't have an issue with this, so long as it's fair. In terms of the wage increase, I think it's a fair offer and should have been brought to the members to vote. The union is meant to be working for us and right now it doesn't seem like they are. If you don't like management's offer take the offer and amend accordingly and take it back to the table. That's what happens in negotiations one side puts forth a contract you then rebut. There should be none of this stalling and using us as pawns because that's what it feels like. Unions need to stop acting like it's the 1970s and move with the times. I'm not on the picket line because I don't agree with what the union is asking us to fight for. I also don't condemn those who've chosen to go back to work, every person's situation is different financially, in terms of family etc. So don't be knocking those people who have gone back and are living pay cheque to pay cheque, who have mouths to feed and mortgages to pay. You might be all standing on the picketing together, but at the end of the day if that person loses their home do you have extra space in yours to welcome them in and feed their family. No. I thought not. Do what's right for yourself and what you believe in and let others do the same That's what you call respect.

Abdul
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08-13-2012 10:35 PM

David, it's you who needs to give your head a shake.Look at the Strike Bulletin that was released Sept 2. Not one word in that docnuemt (which is in regards to issues of contention with respect to our collective agreement) points to part-time vs full-time jobs. Really, read it. Now read the President's message of Sept 1st. and contrast the focus of the two docnuemts. Virtually his entire entry is about this fight being about full vs part-time/contract positions. Indeed.It's worth pointing out here that the latter are not OPSEU members (as you know) and therefore contribute nothing towards the economic strength nor socio-political influence of OPSEU while they remain so.Now, you can rudely say that this isn't about joining a union all you like. But the fact of the matter is that we are on strike not because of some haggling over a 1.75% offer vs 3% demand pay-raise issue but because we are pawns in the larger ideological fight between OPSEU and the province to unionize part-timers and not just in any old union, but OPSEU, naturally.And Smokey admits as much.

Shay
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08-15-2012 07:03 PM

I wonder how many of you have alutalcy worked outside a public sector union. You really don't get it. You will strike for now and if your lucky you will go back soon for less than what is already offered.I worked in the private sector for 15 years and when I got this job I knew I died and went to heaven. You people need to fly under the radar or your cushy little setup is going to come crashing down all around you.The public has had it, go back to work now well you still have a job.I have survived 3 strikes in the private sector and none were worth it. How many strikes have any of you been through? This is not a game it is your livelyhood. Don't let mob mentality continue to make your decisions.You have until the end of this week to end this sillyness or hi ho hi ho it's back to work I go ..